Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourses 35.216–218

The Exterior and What’s Suffering in the Three Times

Bāhirātītādiyaṁdukkhasutta — Saṭṭhipeyyālavagga

Setting
Not restated in this discourse
Speakers
The Buddha, addressing the mendicants
Form
The identical structure as SN 35.213-215, entering the chain one step later
Length
under 1 minute to read
Northern parallel
A rough counterpart may exist in the Chinese Saṃyukta-āgama (T99), though this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — a shortened, two-step chain

Why this discourse

This file is the exterior half's second combination in round three: the exterior sense fields declared suffering directly, entering the chain one step later than SN 35.213-215's own full version, mirroring SN 35.207-209's own interior treatment.

Reading guide

Suffering, entered directly, applied outward

The same shortened entry SN 35.207-209 used for the interior fields repeats here for the exterior fields, with past, future, and present already folded into the single opening line.

Key terms

yaṁ dukkhaṁ, tadanattā — “what's suffering is not-self” — this file's own entry point, unchanged from SN 35.207-209's own
rūpā…dhammā — sights…ideas — the six exterior sense fields, folded into a single sentence, as in SN 35.213-215
atītaṁ anāgataṁ paccuppannaṁ — past, future, present — carried over unchanged
anicca — impermanent — SN 35.213-215's own opening quality, skipped here as the chain enters one step later
anattā — not-self — the third and final combination, following next at SN 35.219-221

The text

The complete merged file, apart from its own closing ellipsis: the declaration, naming each of the six exterior sense fields, then the chain's own remaining steps. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1“Mendicants, in the past … future … present sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, and ideas are suffering. What’s suffering is not-self …”

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Self-check quiz

5 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.

Question 1 of 5
Where does this file's own chain formula begin, compared to SN 35.213-215's own?
Correct: A. Mirroring SN 35.207-209's own interior treatment, this file skips the impermanence step.
Question 2 of 5
What time-values does this file compress into its own opening declaration?
Correct: A. Atītaṁ anāgataṁ paccuppannaṁ, unchanged from every other file in round three.
Question 3 of 5
What combination follows this file, completing round three's exterior half?
Correct: A. SN 35.219-221 completes round three entirely, cycling the shortest chain entry through the exterior fields.
Question 4 of 5
What interior-half discourse does this file mirror?
Correct: A. The exterior half repeats the identical shortened entry point already run for the interior fields.
Question 5 of 5
What sense fields does this file address?
Correct: A. Bāhirāyatana, continuing the exterior half opened at SN 35.213.
Answered 0 of 5 · Correct 0